If we lived in a perfect world
by QTW
Summary: The senior designer of PROTOTYPE said there's no cute fuzzy bunny in Alex's future. Never said we couldn't give him one. Here's a happy ending for our favorite mass murderer.
1. Chapter 1

17

Why are there no animals in PROTOTYPE?

Did you guys ever notice that there are no animals in prototype? I did. Personally, I think all animals are freaking psychics that can tell when major shit (natural or not) is about to hit the fan. But then I began to wonder what it would be like if there were animals. And yes, I am writing this with full knowledge of the crows and ravens, but they don't count.

Here's the result.

This is in no way meant to be taken seriously. This is in no way going to be perfect, but I can promise it's not going to be God-awful. This isn't going to be one of those deep analyses into Alex/Zeus' mind either. It's just some Alex/Dana bro and sis fun and fluff. Beware! Alex is kinda OCC in the fluffy parts but then again it's Alex. Fluff never really made it into his dictionary.

I own nothing so don't freakin' sue me.

Constructive criticism welcomed. Flames will be used constructively.

And by constructively I mean to incinerate creators of the twilight movies. It's my first fanfic so don't bash me more than is strictly necessary.

_TAGGART! YOU SUICIDAL MORON! (RAEG)= Alex mental talk_

_GOOSE-STEPPING MF's!= Dana mental talk_

My favorite lines in the entire game.

Enjoy!

Why there are no animals in PROTOTYPE

I stretched as I stepped out of the alley way, a slight smile growing on my face.

Well, I got some news from the Doc a while back. Dana's condition is improving. Ragland even said she may be up and running within the week. Just before Christmas. And just before I'd lost my mind from worrying, as strange as that sounds.

It's been about half a year since the outbreak and the quarantine had been (for the most part) lifted. I was beginning to lose faith in not only my hope of Dana's recovery, but Ragland's word as well. Time after time, visit after visit I'd hear the same words. "She's stable" he'd say "She's fine" he'd say. Well to me being in a coma was not fine. But she did get better. And the day I had my faith restored was nothing I'd forget any time soon.

The day I'd gotten my reassurance was a particularly shitty one. I'd been just walking down a street in Time Square when I suddenly heard a chopper overhead. This wasn't anything strange since the outbreak as they were still searching for me so I just continued to act normal and kept walking. This seemed to be working up until one of Blackwatch's greatest fuck ups blatantly screamed. On the loud speaker. In Time Square. With more than a thousand (if not more) people in the streets and all well with earshot.

"ZEUS! We know you're down there! You have 20 seconds to-!"

The rest was drowned out by the "more than a thousand" I mentioned earlier. People didn't know what ZEUS was. Our beloved government made sure of that. But they sure as hell knew what it meant. Body parts, blood, and bullets galore. And there wasn't a snowball's chance in hell a single person in Time Square that day didn't have the following words run through their head:

"Oh, fuck no. I did not just survive the worst event since 9-11 just to fucking die in a crossfire between the military and God knows what!"

Actually, I'm fairly sure I heard someone say those exact words. But you get the general picture.

The outbreak all over again. People running and screaming, bullets flying, and me running down the street at full tilt with an Apache on my ass. Fun.

My day continued as follows.

A missile from the helicopter (the guy must've been cross-eyed or lucky as hell to aim that far ahead) blew up my path thus sending me rocketing into an open dumpster.

After exiting the dumpster a nearby hobo proceeded to point his finger at me and laugh his head off.

I attempted to run up the wall of the building next to me but fell into the dumpster again because of the liquefied trash that decided to make itself at home on every inch of my body reduced the friction I needed to climb. Oh, and the hobo began to laugh again.

I entered what could only be describe as a blind rage and chucked the dumpster at the chopper.

And you can probably guess the rest. Surprisingly there weren't any real casualties except for the soldiers and that goddamned hobo.

I decided to stop and check up on Dana and the doc before calling it a day and sprinted towards the doc's private facility he had set up for Dana seeing as anyone with connections to me would probably get interrogated thoroughly and then killed.

Upon entering I found the doc pacing with a look that screamed "big news for Alex".

I immediately swore that if he gave me bad news I was going to rip his arms off. He didn't need them if he couldn't help Dana.

When he finally noticed me a quick look of indecision spread across his face before vanishing. His discomfort still shined in his rigid stance though. He walked towards me but froze at a point. The doctor's nose wrinkled.

"Good God what is th-!" he was cut of by a snarl from my end and the doc paled considerably despite his natural skin color.

"You wanted to tell me something?" I tried to hide the venom in my voice, but the question came out as more of a death threat than an inclination to continue.

The doc stuttered a bit before returning to his previous state of discomfort. "Oh, yes… Well, it's your sister. She's making progress. In fact, she may wake up before the holidays begin."

I think I stopped listening after hearing the word 'progress'. Part of me instantly felt relief. Dana was going to wake up. I could tell her how much I missed her and how sorry I was for not protecting her when Greene took her. Another part of me felt something else entirely.

Dread. Fear possibly.

Fear that she would leave me because of what I was. She knew that I killed people. That I hunted and consumed like the rabid monster everyone thought me to be. Or knew me to be depending on who you asked.

Would she fear me for what I was? A virus. Or would she force herself to see the late Alex Mercer whose skin I wear? Neither would benefit Dana and I.

I quickly shoved those thoughts away to focus on the doctor.

"Then why don't you seem too happy about this?" I knew something was going on. And not one bit of it was going to be good.

"I- I was checking Dana's vitals when-. My only guess is that when Greene…"

No… NO!

The doctor was cut off by something. It resembled my voice, but it was to far away for me to hear. Before I could really process any intelligible thoughts I found myself hovering over Dana's body with my infected vision at work.

No.

Was that me?

Dana's body glowed with an unnatural white sheen under my gaze, but at the same time the glare of white lost luminosity in some areas, shimmering like the surface of water.

Infected but-

"Immune." The doctor's voice croaked behind me. "She has immunity to the Red Light, but Greene anticipated this and set the cells to kill her if she couldn't be infected. It is only a matter of time before…"

"Shut up."

He didn't understand. It wasn't trying to kill her.

"Alex, I'm sorry but-!" A feral roar echoed out through the room as my vision hazed with red. The doc was smart enough to make himself scarce. I didn't notice.

No. She can't. I'll be empty again. No matter how many I consume I'll be empty. Dana's my only memory. The only good memories I've made since waking up in that morgue were the ones of Dana. The only heat I have in a life that only allows me peaceful contact with that of a cold corpse and the only sense of relief from the heat of freshly fired bullets.

A rage worse than that of any I felt before washed against the inside of me chest. I seemed to collapse on the inside from the acidic burn. My spine slouched until I was leaning over my sister's face. A deep vacuuming abyss in my chest crippled me and the pain brought me to my knees. The tip of my nose made contact with Dana's throat and I instinctively pushed into her neck, as if I was asking for her to respond in kind. To respond at all.

No such luck. Not on the physical plane anyway.

A mental tug was at the edge my mind. It was weak. So much so that if wasn't so focused on its source I would have missed it.

_Dana?_

No response. I pushed harder.

_Dana!_

_Shut up! Shut the fuck up and leave me alone!_

I stayed silent as my mind numbed.

_Why?_

_Because you're not real._

So she did hate me. But for some reason the feeling wasn't communal. I couldn't hate Dana.

_I never was real. _

_Then go away. You're just a dream. _

A dream?

_What do you mean? I'm right here aren't I?_

_That's what I thought too. I tried to touch you but you weren't really there. I can't feel you. You're not there._

Without a second thought I rushed every part of my being into her's.

_I am here! _

She seemed stunned. I didn't think she'd respond until I felt something warm through the connection we somehow made.

_Alex? Please be real. Please._

Her pleas hurt. I didn't like it. She should be happy. She deserved to be.

But, I can't make her happy by lying.

_No. I told you already. I'm not Alex. I'm a virus wearing his skin. Do you understand?_

But the truth can hurt too. I know that all too well.

The roaring silence impaled my thought processes as I waited for her response.

_I know._

I was stunned.

_You know?_

A silence again.

_I found out through a GENTEK report. Alex is dead, isn't he?_

A pause. The stagnant air in my lungs leaves me as I breathe a sigh.

_Yes._

I felt her hurt. I felt her grief. And for some reason, her relief.

A bitter laugh echoed through the connection. There was no contempt. Nor was there any humor. Just a soulless expression of the indecision of her emotions.

_You know? When I found out I was so scared. Angry too. Someone was using me through my brother's skin. A stranger had become family and yet still remained a stranger. And the fact that you were using me for information didn't help. The Alex I knew did the same thing and left for five years. I figured that if I kept helping you'd do the same. But you kept coming back to me. _

I stayed silent and let her vent.

_I was so scared. Would you kill me? Was any part of you still Alex? Would it be a good thing if you were? Why hadn't you killed me like anyone else? All these questions swirled around in my head and I didn't know how to ask a single one of them. When you finally blew up and told me what you were doing out there I could see how confused you were. Then you apologized. You looked like some lost puppy.  
_

I gave an audible snort and I felt her amusement.

_You looked nothing like Alex. And for some reason I was relieved. When the hunter came you looked so scared. You said my name in a way that Alex never did. You aren't Alex. You're not the ass who left me alone for five years. And yet, at the same time you are the same intelligent and yet conniving ass that he was. When I realized how confusing that sounded I had moment to walk a mile in your shoes. Do __**you**__know who you are?_

Feelings jolted through me.

Sadness. Hatred. Fear.

_No._

I could feel her smile.

_Can I tell you?_

Hope. Trust. Faith. Words that were nothing to me suddenly meant so much. I had a deep yearning in my chest. Beyond the Web of Intrigue and Alex Mercer someone silently bid, no, begged her for the words they wanted to hear.

_Yes. _

A heavy weight fell upon that person as he waited. As if this response would determine everything and whatever that everything affected in its entirety. I awaited Dana's response.

Could she give me what I wanted? What I needed?

_You are my brother. Not Alex. But yourself. Whoever you are now. Whoever you choose to be in the end. You are my family. My brother._

Family?

I didn't understand. My face felt wet and everything felt warm. Welcoming even. The warmth seemed to intensify and the sodden feeling on my face got worse. I reveled in the new feelings I'd discovered up until a question from Dana came through the bond.

_Will I die?_

_No. _The answer came simple to me. Dana was immune, so Greene can't control her and it couldn't kill her. But the Red Light wasn't attacking Dana's body.

It was attacking her mind.

Greene didn't need to be in control. She just needed someone to undoubtedly carry out the work she'd started. Even if that someone was just a mindless shell. Even if that someone would just turn into an indestructible husk that would only know to spread the infection like wildfire and kill whatever got in the way.

Someone like Dana.

And the fact we were communicating through our thoughts only proved my theory.

I didn't need to say anything. At this point my thoughts were her own. She knew.

We both did.

When Dana would awake I would have no choice but to kill or con…sume.

Logic and probability crashed against each other in waves as my mind created a solution.

Inside of me was Elizabeth Greene. The Red Light virus. Yet it was the Black Light, I, who remained in control. Truly thinking about it now only one difference stood between the Black and Red Light viruses. Red Light was designed to infect. Black Light was designed to consume anything and everything. Even another virus.

_Do you think it will work?_

The question shocked me so harshly that the mental connection almost snapped.

_Will it work? Yes. The question that should be answered is, are you willing to give up being Dana Mercer? You'll be giving up everything. Any chance you had to lead a normal life._

Part of me truly wished to dissuade her but thinking of the alternative made me sick. I felt I had to warn her, at least.

_Pfft. A normal life. And when exactly did I have that? Before I became an intelligence resource for my big brother who just so happens to become one of the most powerful beings on the planet later on? Or after I went into a friggin' coma? Cuz' I'm telling you now, I think all of it was shit city._

True. Alex and Dana didn't have much in life that could be considered good.

_Your very identity will be nothing more than a distant memory, if you retain any memories at all._

That was debatable. She could still retain all of her memories and gain the virus. She wouldn't be exactly Dana because of what I'd have to pass onto her but she'd still in a sense be Dana because that's all she'll remember being. Just as I only remembered being Alex Mercer in the beginning.

_I have you to remind me. And besides, I won't be myself anymore so I'll get a blank slate._

I fought the urge to smile for a moment but relented when I remembered she couldn't see me.

_No more food._

_Have you tried eating since you woke up?_

…_Fair enough. It's going to hurt._

_But it'll be worth it. And it's better than being some dead chick's puppet._

Maybe…

I let go of our bond and opened my eyes back to reality. The artificial lights blinded me temporarily as my eyes adjusted to the brightness. I looked back down at Dana and instantly saw that the doctor hadn't been lying when he'd said she was making progress. Her face had regained its color and a miniscule smile seemed to be playing on her lips. I almost thought she was faking her sleep state and poked her cheek just to be sure.

No response.

I tried again. Just in case. Same result.

I gave a soft sigh and brushed aside stray hairs that dangled on her face, leaving her forehead bare.

Almost unconsciously, I leaned forward and pressed my lips to the skin of her head. She felt so warm.

I backed away finally, and dragged forth three of the tendrils I usually used for consuming from my back. As if each had a mind of its own, they leaned forward and began to inspect Dana's body for ample entrance points. After several seconds two of the three spots were decided. One just above her heart, and the second settled between where her stomach and liver should have been. The third seemed undecided though, as it gently snaked over her body. An idea struck the final appendage and quickly attached itself to the back of Dana's neck and into her nervous system.

_You ready?_

Dana's affirmation came and she internally tensed.

_OK._

The tendrils shuddered at the feeling of their new usage as my biomass pushed into Dana's body. Upon injection Dana's body immediately began to spasm. Her mouth and eyes opened to release a silent scream and her agony, coupled with my own, was worse than anything brought on by Blackwatch's efforts during the outbreak sans the nuke at the end of my journey. I fell to my knees, shut my eyes, and endured if only to make the process end sooner.

It felt so unnatural. My personal tools to consume and kill were unaccustomed to giving away biomass and the initial resistance to the new flow was… distracting. It was as if I was trying to force my blood to move in reverse. It very well may have been. My faux organs twitched in displeasure and my mind was going numb.

All the while I kept checking on Dana's progress. Her body was reacting violently to the new changes and the already destructive nature of my cells did little to lighten my sister's plight. The cells went about the infection process methodically. First gone was the skeletal structure. Liquidating the bones until only a blackened copy remained. The organs came next and followed the same procedure. The heart was especially responsive. The flutter of a heart was delicious and familiar; dragging up a bloodlust I usually had no shame in showing to the world. Had Dana not been my sister the maddening beat would have driven me to kill her simply out of impulse.

I remember the final step is the one I remember the most. The mental changes needed to be last if her body was to be outfitted properly. At first the transfer of information was simple and slow. The memories of Zeus the Blacklight virus were easily transmitted. Had I the gal or capacity to do so I could easily make a joke and say that the blood just made everything easy to slip through, but that's a line I couldn't cross that line yet. Dana was probably going to throw up if I did. Coma or no coma.

She had to watch every bit of the eighteen days of hell that the outbreak brought on. Every kill, every consummation, watching me hunt both humans and infected alike. The smell of rotted flesh, and fresh blood. The sudden rush of adrenaline. People screaming. Begging for their lives either from Blackwatch or from me and all with the same result.

No one was spared.

Some memories moved by slowly. Some good some bad.

Feeling the relief of the cancer being lifted from me was a good one. I remember being so relieved and strong, as if I were a bird that was too weak to fly that suddenly took off without a single thought. The feeling of armor and blade was jewels to my prized return to the fight. I was back and ready to dig into every idiot who dared to oppose me.

It felt good.

But then there were the memories of events prior.

The memories started to flash by at a greater speed. All were flashes of information stolen from people I've killed. Bloodied experiments, horrid screams of rage and despair. But it all went quiet at the very first memory. _My_ very first memory.

+ Flashback! +

Get the FUCK OUT!

The shouts of the scientists who were about to perform the autopsy on my-… Alex Mercer's body still scared me a little. I was basically an infant then. An infant with the mental capacity of a fully grown adult sure, but still. I'd no idea what was going on I wasn't even thinking about the outside world, hell I wasn't even aware of it. My entire existence in those moments was the two people there and the room. When I'd heard the man yell to get out I thought he meant me too. I could tell that they didn't have much concern for my health as they left me behind, but I didn't want to stay still if there was going to be trouble. I followed them out obediently, not at all knowing what they were running from or the fact that it was me they feared so much. My memories of being outside for the first time was probably the best I could recall without digging into the memories of those I've killed. If it means anything to anyone then they should know that I didn't feel so coldly about the world as I do now. To me the night sky was the highlight of my life. The stars shined in an almost welcoming manner and the air was warm with a slight breeze. A perfect night. The voices of the two men I followed out brought me back to earth. My body was still weak so I hid behind a nearby truck to keep away from whatever was causing the trouble.

At the sound of what I immediately recognized as a helicopter I peaked out. The two I'd followed out were arguing with some men that came in the helicopter. Did they really have time for fighting amongst themselves if something bad was happening? The scientist that was doing most of the arguing turned his back and in his frustration noticed the sound of guns being cocked a few seconds too late. A shot ran out. Only one was really needed and soon the other met the same fate. The bodies fell with a puddle of red already encircling them. I blinked before actually realizing it was blood that I was looking at. Was it possible for blood to smell so sweet? The coppery smell still remained but there was something else that seemed attractive mixed into it.

My body began move forward as I was compelled to move to the liquid. My stomach snarled and my mouth watered.

What? I knew full well that was the body's way of displaying hunger at the sight of food. But I was staring at a pool of blood! That couldn't be right-!

It was only until a soldier started yelling did I notice my mistake.

There's the target! There!

All soldiers responded accordingly and pointed their guns at me.

Naturally, I was afraid. Maybe the virus that GENTEK built had no sense of self preservation or the notion of physical limits, but the mind of Alex Mercer did. I ran until they had me pinned against the wall. Nowhere to run, I begged for them to wait. Maybe there'd been some sort of mistake in who they were after. They shot despite my pleas and without a hint of hesitation. The force of the shots was enough to knock me into the wall behind me, but… it didn't hurt. I was aware of the fact that several bullets passed through me. Out of exhaustion and loss of balance I fell to my knees and instead of being met by a pool of red, small blotches of black shimmered on the pavement.

Maybe the mix of fear and adrenaline in me forced me back up to my feet. Maybe it was simply my will to live. I don't know what it was, but before I knew it I was on my feet and running for a nearby dumpster pressed to the far wall.

My body coiled like a snake and propelled me over the obstructions as if I was jumping over a puddle or rock. It was easy.

And though it may be needless to say, I was scared shitless.

It was common knowledge that jumping a 12ft wall wasn't normal. So why could I do it?

The dull ache in my chest and limbs pushed my questions away. I could still hear the shouts of the soldiers giving and taking orders and I was dead if I stayed still.

The rest was mostly a blurred mess of blood and fire. Even though I was plowing through the military forces with what others would see as ease my vision was fading and my muscles quivered with each expansion and contraction that they made.

When my body finally gave out I was at the end of a vacant alley. The roar of a chopper's blades weren't to far away, but the noise only seemed to lull me. The words of the scientists rang through my head.

Alex J. Mercer, huh.

Just as my consciousness was about to fade something familiar wafted into my senses.

A scent? Gunpowder and metal. A soldier? A human.

The quick beat of that nervous heart made my mouth began to water again. I think whoever it was shot me. I played dead and waited for the beat to slow.

Kill…

"Target down. I repeat Target is down."

His back was turned. Perfect.

I lurched forward and grabbed the soldier by the arm. Heat radiated from his soon to be corpse and made me hold tighter, causing some small cracks to arise from the grinding bones.

I tossed his body over my head as if he weighed next to nothing. A scream before the sick crack of the man's neck was the last breathe the man uttered and quite possibly my first. Black-red tendrils spilled from my body, each rabidly attaching itself to the fresh carcass before me. Something hot passed through each tendril and to my body.

Blood.

My body shivered from the shear force of the euphoria coursing through me. I felt as if nothing really existed before that feeling. The sweet ecstasy burned itself into my being like a drug and drove me wild. I slowly turned into something completely different than whatever got of that slab in the morgue.

I was wild. Untamable.

Something totally new to the world and yet perfectly adapted to thriving in it.

The blood in the soldier's body ran dry but the pleasure that it caused still hummed in me. It was invigorating. And I wanted more.

Another heartbeat was moving towards me. I had to move. I still wasn't strong enough to take on another troop and if this one saw me he'd call for reinforcements and I'd end up back on the slab. And running up the wall behind me would only result in me getting caught by the chopper I'd heard earlier. I had to do something. But what?

My body reacted for me. A swarm of small tendrils raced around my body and changed my image. At first my skin liquidized in nothing more than a black and red mass reminiscent of a human then colors and details swept over my surface and left the uniform of a soldier. I didn't know what to make of any of that but I sure as hell knew what to do with it.

In the short while that it took me to transform the soldier turned the corner and began demanding something of me. Not sure what.

The memory of that tremendous feeling of ecstasy returned and sapped me of patience and there was no hesitation in my next attempt to attain it. I snatched at the soldier's neck and shivered. Just the mere feeling of his pulse was clouding my thoughts. But I couldn't revel. I had to get out before someone else caught up with me. I put all of my weight into slamming the soldier into the pavement. I heard the wet crack of his skull but took no chances and beat him within an inch of his life. A scream for help would have meant problems. Problems I couldn't deal with just yet.

As the soldiers body went limp I took blood again, and again came the same pleasure I'd felt before.

It was short lived though. A fire doused my mind in a pain I could never imagine. Something was forcing its way into my head. I fell to my knees and bore witness to the information overload in my head. I saw a woman struggling to get away from a group of soldiers. A string of profanity came from her mouth which impressed me, not only for the woman's bravery but also how creative she could be under pressure.

And that stuck a cord in me.

That face? I've seen her somewhere. Red hair, electric blue-grey eyes.

_Dana…_

Oh my god, Dana!

Where my memories should have been was still a vacant space but the fact that the woman was my sister was concrete.

I had to find her. I had to help my sister. A single minded determination that I'd never felt before fueled my body from my latest prey and into the night.

_Dana…_

+ End Flashback! +

I pulled away and my tendrils returned to their designated places. God I felt like shit. And as I looked at her it seemed Dana wasn't any better off. I linked our minds together.

_Dana?_

_Bro? Starving… Food… Anything!_

Dana wasn't kidding. Her hunger was immense and was gnawing her apart.

I quickly dashed out of the building and snatched up whatever poor fool that happened to be in my arms reach and consumed them.

I ran back into the building and fed Dana the fresh biomass through one of my tendrils. This seemed to satisfy her. Her body relaxed and her hunger quieted to a low hum as it never really goes away. I touched her mind again.

_Hey._

Dana's eyes fluttered open and she gave me a smile when I jumped back in shock.

"Hey." Dana's smile suddenly melted. "Take a shower!"

So, yeah. It's been about five days since then and I've been spending most of my time harvesting biomass for Dana. She was awake now but she needed me to get food for her until she's strong enough to move again. With Dana's recovery in sight, Ragland decided to pick up and leave Manhattan and New York all together and was going to be gone by this afternoon. I visited both of them as often as Blackwatch strike teams allow and-

A scream, a frail one at that, echoed behind me. I turned and my mouth soured in disgust. Apparently some pathetic douche bag thought that stealing from an old woman would be a good idea. Honestly, cliché much? This is the stuff idiots do to play pranks on society. Sure I killed people too but if I wanted something materialistic than I worked for it. Food and information came from the humans I consumed but honestly, most of my kills are necessary for my survival.

This idiot seemed to take it seriously enough though. The old woman's assaulter brought out a pocket knife and sliced the woman's throat without a second thought. I sighed.

By the time his arm reached the end of his swing's arch I had my claws firmly implanted in his ribcage. The man's body shuddered as he hemorrhaged, leaving ugly stains on the ground. I loosened my hand and the newly created corpse slid from my sharpened fingers and to the pavement. I didn't even consider consuming him. Dana and I would probably get poisoned from the vast levels of douche-baggery this guy possessed.

The old woman next to me spluttered up blood in her dying gasps. I stooped down to her.

"Don't worry. It'll be over soon." There wasn't a drop of empathy in my voice. I didn't even try but the animal in me always felt the need for a bit of cat and mouse before I made a kill. But the woman didn't seem offended nor scarred, which annoyed me slightly. She just kept tossing her eyes at the purse on her arm. Something important? Oh well. I consumed the old woman (purse and all) and continued on my way, though I had to admit something in the biomass I consumed tasted strange. Maybe the woman had a disease of some sort. I shrugged and moved on. I was at the edge of the alley when I noticed I was a bit off balance. I shifted my weight a bit and felt something brush against my leg.

What?

I looked down and found what looked like a black snake with a white head at first. But upon further inspection I noticed it was covered and fur and its length ran up to my-

No…

Not believing what I was seeing I snatched the thing form the ground and gave a sharp tug. I was instantly hit by a wave of pain in my lower back and a sharp yowl left my lips. My hands covered my mouth reflexively.

Oh God.

I quickly dug through the old woman's fading memories. She'd set out to do some shopping and took what looked to be a black and white tom cat with her.

Her purse! Shit!

Logic tugged at me snidely. A little voice whispered: _Hey genius. If you have a tail, wouldn't mean you'd have a pair of ears to go with it? _

I reached for the top of my hoodie and there they were. A pair of muscles stood tall atop my head, twitching every now and again but otherwise motionless. Both had the same texture as my hood, but with an organic twist to it.

I didn't really now how to react. How does one react to finding they've got cat ears and a tail now? And how in the Hell do I make them disappear?

These new appendages didn't really feel like my other transformations. I couldn't describe it exactly, but it felt no different than having a nose or fingers. And I had a feeling they were stuck there unless I got Ragland to do something about it.

I tensed. Oh, crap. Ragland was leaving Manhattan.

Shit! Shit! Shit! - Wait!

Maybe Ragland left some of his notes at the facility. I quickly shook my head at that.

The doc wouldn't do something like that. But maybe I could catch him before he left.

I ran through the crowds as fast as I could. Faster than I ever remember going actually. I stepped through the doors of Dana's facility only to find the place barren sans the slab where Dana slept, a few metal closets, and a desk that were undoubtedly empty.

Speaking of Dana, said beloved sister launched herself from behind a closet and squeezed me as tightly as her new body would allow. For a brief moment my dilemma was forgotten and I hugged Dana back.

"You're up." My voice shook slightly. Dana pushed herself lightly out of the hug only to fall into me again. I scoffed "Barely."

Dana's looked up at me and her silver blue eyes shined playfully.

"Well yeah. Let's have your ass sit still for half a year and see how you do." Her words were slightly muffled from her nuzzling my chest as she spoke.

I chuckled at the thought but said nothing until I suddenly remembered my little problem. I turned serious and stared down at Dana.

"Do you have and way of contacting Ragland?" I demanded.

Dana looked at me bemusedly. "Why would I have- Oh my God!"

I winced and my new ears flattened against my hood. As much as Dana's surprise amused me the subject that caused it was too depressing to allow me any amusement.

A pair of shaky hands reached up and fondled my new ears.

I jumped back. "Hey! Knock it off!" I yelled indignantly. My tail twitched irritably and right into Dana's line of sight.

Dana's face lit up. "You got a tail too!"

And so the chase began. Desperate to evade my now crazed sister I ran around the room, dodging and ducking every attempt she made to grab my new ears, which didn't take much in her weakened state. Eventually she caught me by grabbing hold of my tail and giving me the sad "please big brother" look that she'd used when she wanted me to do something against my will. With a sigh I relented and let her have her way and sat down on Dana's slab.

Almost nervously, Dana started to inspect my ears. She started at the tips, giving soft tugs as if to make sure they were real. After proving that theory, she moved to the middle of both ears and rubbed circles into the backs skillfully. If only I'd known. If only I'd noticed the slight droop of my eyes or the low humming in my throat I would have stopped her. Finally Dana's hands reached the very base of my ears.

A dam inside me somewhere seemingly broke and a deep vibrating left my chest. Pleasure made my skin prickle and I leaned to the right where most of the feeling had been generated. Being bold (and curious to see how far this cat like behavior would go) Dana's left hand dropped to the junction of my chin and throat and began to rub her fingers along my jaw. If Dana was doing this to reinforce my already embarrassing behavior then she got her wish. The vibrations in my chest got stronger and before I could stop myself I pulled Dana close to me and drew my tongue across her cheek affectionately.

Before Dana could react came the sound of keys hitting the floor.

Dana and I turned to find an awestruck Doctor Ragland.

The doctor quickly caught his composure and cleared his throat. "Well, Dana, I'm glad to see you're up and about again."

The doctor's words were met with silence.

Nervously the doctor picked up his keys and shuffled passed the both of us.

"Don't mind me." The doctor said hurriedly as he unlocked a draw and pulled out a file. "Just left my notes is all."

Finally done!

I just finished this at 4:43 AM so you people better appreciate this. Review or kitty Alex will use you as a scratching post. Thanks for reading! Bye!


	2. HELP!

Author's Note/Slight Hiatus

Ok people, I'm in a bit of a jam.

Ya see, I pretty much have the rest of the story set out so I can just type, revise, and post. But I need your opinion on a few details.

I'll be bringing Cross back eventually. Not as the Cure but as the human with the Cure's abilities. Now here's were you help me.

Should I:

Have a Cross x Alex.

Have them in an eventual brotherly type thing.

Just have them be somewhat in between.

Just know that I'm already leaning towards C.

PARIAH. Should I have him in there at all? If so as a child, adult, or a child with an adult mind? What names do you suggest(can't keep calling the poor guy PARIAH)?

Ragland. I've considered infecting Ragland and having him become the "family doctor". Your thoughts?

R&R. Thanks for the help.


End file.
